"Is technology affecting pupils' concentration? Some schools think so and have banned the use of mobile phones and other hardware in the classroom. Photograph: Alamy
A growing number of books, including The Shallows, argue that the internet and digital gadgets are making it harder for us to concentrate. The Pew Research Centre in America recently surveyed almost 2,500 teachers and found that 77% thought that the internet had a "mostly positive" impact on students' research work, while 87% felt modern technologies were creating an "easily distracted generation with short attention spans".

But could this simply be the latest variation of 'the Elvis Hypothesis' – because something is new, popular with young people, and challenges existing hierarchies and traditions, it must be bad?"